System and method for independently authorizing auxiliary communication services

ABSTRACT

Systems and methods which determines the likelihood that a calling (or in some cases the called) user will pay for a particular auxiliary service are described. A system of an embodiment considers the user&#39;s credit risk and his/her propensity to pay, when deciding if the user is eligible for a particular auxiliary service. A methodology used for determining propensity to pay for an auxiliary service according to embodiments is independent from a determination of propensity to pay for a basic calling service. Thus, the criteria used, and the weight given to each criteria, for determining eligibility for auxiliary services can be different from the criteria and criteria weight used for basic communication connections.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 10/135,883, entitled “OPTIMIZING PROFITABILITY INBUSINESS TRANSACTIONS,” filed Apr. 29, 2002, which is incorporatedherein by reference. Also incorporated by reference herein are U.S.patent application Ser. No. 10/190,315, entitled “SYSTEMS AND METHODSFOR OFFERING A SERVICE TO A PARTY ASSOCIATED WITH A BLOCKED CALL”; filedJul. 2, 2002, U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/640,505, entitled“SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR CALLED PARTY CONTROLLED MESSAGE DELIVERY,” filedAug. 13, 2003, U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/947,986, entitled“OPTIMIZING PROFITABILITY IN BUSINESS TRANSACTIONS” filed Sep. 23, 2004,and U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/562,829, entitled “OPTIMIZINGPROFITABILITY IN BUSINESS TRANSACTIONS” filed Nov. 22, 2006.

TECHNICAL FIELD

This disclosure relates to communication systems and more particularlyto communication systems used in incarceration situations for allowingcalling users opportunities to use, and pay for, auxiliary services.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Current communication systems often have messaging options, such asvoice-mail capability. However, a problem exists when the calling partyreceives a no-answer situation. In the normal (non-incarceration)situation the call would rollover to a voicemail application. When theuser is an incarcerated person, or when the user is calling anincarcerated person, payment for the call is often an issue. While acalling party may be willing to pay to talk to a person in real time,that same person may not wish to pay to leave a message. In somesituations, billing for calls to and from incarcerated persons ishandled through a LEC billing system and in other situations the billingis pre-paid. In some situations the calling party, depending uponpre-established credit, is post billed for calls on a bulk (weekly,monthly) basis.

In developing the present invention it was discovered that, when thecall is terminated at a messaging service, instead of being completed inreal-time, different payment options may be desirable and thuscompletion of such calls are problematic when the calling (or called)party is to be charged for leaving a message or for having otherservices performed.

In addition, it would be desirable to allow communication systems,particularly electronic messaging systems, involving incarceratedfacilities to have access to auxiliary services, such as messageprinting, binding, paper selection, hand delivery, etc. Paymentdifficulties, as well as monitoring of messages, time or frequencylimits for messages and the like prevent such systems from beingdeployed presently.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is directed to systems and methods which determinethe likelihood that a calling (or in some cases the called) user is ableand/or will pay for a particular auxiliary service. The system considersthe user's credit risk, his/her propensity to pay and/or other metricsindication of payment or collection risk, when deciding if the user isoffered or is eligible for a particular auxiliary service. Themethodology used for determining propensity to pay for an auxiliaryservice according to embodiments of the invention is independent from adetermination of propensity to pay for a basic calling service. Thus,the criteria used, and the weight given to each criteria, fordetermining eligibility for auxiliary services can be different from thecriteria and criteria weight used for basic communication connections.

In one embodiment, when a user encounters a busy or no-answer situation,the calling user is connected to an interactive voice response (IVR)system for beginning the voice messaging process. While the user isinteracting with the IVR, the system in the background determines theuser's credit risk, propensity for that user to pay for the message orother requested service, and/or other metrics of payment or collectionrisk. If collection risk is low enough, the propensity is high enough,and/or the other metrics analyzed are satisfactory (e.g., meet apredetermined threshold), the user may be given the option to confirmhis/her desire to pay and the method of payment. After the user and thesystem agree upon payment methods, the user may be given the opportunityto leave a message (or access other auxiliary services).

According to embodiments of the invention, a user for which theforegoing analysis with respect to offering message or other auxiliaryservices may be the called party. For example, the calling system mayitself record a message from a calling party for delivery to a calledparty which did not answer the attempted call, wherein the called partyis to pay for the message service. Thus, the system of embodiments maymake a determination that the user qualifies for one or more service(e.g., message delivery, “find-me, follow-me, call or messageredirection, etc.) and thus allow a caller to leave a message orotherwise interact with an auxiliary services platform. When the calledparty is placed in contact with the system (e.g., by outbound messagingand/or when the user is next in communication using the system) the usermay agree to pay and/or the payment method used to deliver or completethe auxiliary service (e.g., deliver a recorded message).

The foregoing has outlined rather broadly the features and technicaladvantages of the present invention in order that the detaileddescription of the invention that follows may be better understood.Additional features and advantages of the invention will be describedhereinafter which form the subject of the claims of the invention. Itshould be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the conceptionand specific embodiment disclosed may be readily utilized as a basis formodifying or designing other structures for carrying out the samepurposes of the present invention. It should also be realized by thoseskilled in the art that such equivalent constructions do not depart fromthe spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the appendedclaims. The novel features which are believed to be characteristic ofthe invention, both as to its organization and method of operation,together with further objects and advantages will be better understoodfrom the following description when considered in connection with theaccompanying figures. It is to be expressly understood, however, thateach of the figures is provided for the purpose of illustration anddescription only and is not intended as a definition of the limits ofthe present invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

For a more complete understanding of the present invention, reference isnow made to the following descriptions taken in conjunction with theaccompanying drawing, in which:

FIG. 1 is a high-level block diagram illustrating the main elements ofone embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a high-level block diagram illustrating a more detailed viewof the main elements of the embodiment shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating steps that may be used to implementthe intelligent customer scoring system used in the embodiment of thepresent invention shown in FIGS. 1 and 2;

FIG. 4 is a flow chart that represents the steps of functionalinteraction between the iROM and the iDBS, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2;

FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating steps that may be used to implementthe intelligent high-value customer system used in the embodiment shownin FIGS. 1 and 2;

FIGS. 6 though 10 are embodiments of flow charts used to implement someof the features of the present inventive concepts; and

FIG. 11 depicts a block diagram of a computer system which is adapted touse the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The present disclosure relates to communications, and more particularly,to systems and methods for independently authorizing auxiliarycommunication services, such as for example, voice-messages, printedelectronic mail and the like. It is understood, however, that thefollowing disclosure provides many different embodiments, or examples,for implementing different features of the invention. Specific examplesof components and arrangements are described below to simplify thepresent disclosure. These are, of course, merely examples and are notintended to be limiting. In addition, the present disclosure may repeatreference numerals and/or letters in the various examples. Thisrepetition is for the purpose of simplicity and clarity and does not initself dictate a relationship between the various embodiments and/orconfigurations discussed.

Turning now to FIG. 1, intelligent call and billing management solution(iCBS) 10 comprises a multi-application system for optimizing andmaximizing profitability of business transactions. ICBS 10 includesintelligent customer scoring system (iCSS) 100 for establishing acustomer score, and intelligent revenue opportunity module (iROM) 101for processing the customer score received from iCSS 100 to produce arecommended revenue opportunity application. The purpose behind thecalculation of a customer score may vary from application toapplication. In some embodiments of the present invention, a customerscore may represent a predicted risk management score used to authorizeor deny requested transactions. In other embodiments, a customer scoremay represent a profitability value of that customer. ICBS 10 alsoincludes intelligent direct billing system (iDBS) 102, associated withiROM 101, for selecting any one of a number of direct billing productsfor a customer responsive to customer score-based determinations madewithin iROM 101. In order to facilitate the calculations and predictiverisk assessments made by iCSS 100, iCBS 10 also includes billing andcustomer database (BCD) 104. BCD 104 is generated as iCBS 10 continuesinteractions and completing transactions for customers of the businessmodels. As more information is gathered with regard to the customer, itis stored in BCD 104 for future use and evaluation of the customerscores. BCD 104 is “local” to the prison telecommunication serviceprovider, but may be physically located at the same facilities,different facilities, in a local area network (LAN), a wide area network(WAN), or other such network under the control or influence of theservice provider.

It should be noted that in additional embodiments of the presentinvention, iCBS 10 may also incorporate intelligent high value customerservice (iHVC) 103 for providing a variable and selective customerservice options in which the selection of the level of service offeredto a customer is made responsive to the customer score.

While the inventive elements of iCBS 10 are intended to be applicable toa wide variety of business models and business situations, the detaileddescription presented below of one embodiment of iCBS 10 will bespecifically tailored to the example of a prison telecommunicationsservice provider. Considering the specific example, as prisoners attemptto make out-going calls from the prison, or when a non-incarcerated userattempts to call an incarcerated user, the called phone number isreceived at iCBS 10 and processed by iCSS 100 for calculation of thecustomer score. The called, and, if necessary, the calling, number maybe obtained in many different known ways, such as via dual tone,multiple frequency (DTMF) readers, via an Internet protocol (IP)network, via the signaling system 7 (SS7) network, or via dialed numberidentification service (DNIS) signals provided by the network.

If a particular called (or when appropriate, calling) number is notalready in the service provider's customer database, the customer scorethat is preferably calculated by iCSS 100 will be an initial score basedon the immediately available local information associated with therequested call and the called number. The telecommunication serviceprovider compares the initial customer score against a preset riskthreshold to determine which calls will be allowed and which calls willbe blocked. If a call is blocked, a message may preferably be played tothe inmate informing him or her of the reason why the call was blocked,or switching the inmate to an operator or interactive voice response(IVR) unit to make arrangements for the requested or future calls. Anoutgoing call may also preferably be placed by the IVR system to theblocked called party. The outgoing call preferably informs the calledparty that an inmate was attempting to reach the called party but wasblocked, and offers the called party alternative products for arrangingfuture calls from the inmate. The called party may also preferably beasked for additional or supplemental detailed information that may beused for refining the customer score. For example, the called party maybe asked for their social security number, the length of time at theirhome/job, whether they rent or own, and the like. All of thisinformation is preferably stored in BCD 104 for future use. For securitypurposes, the outgoing call may also preferably offer the called partyan option to permanently block the called party's number from beingcalled. Such circumstances may be necessary to thwart harassment ofvictims by the inmates.

In some situations the calling connection, when not answered by a “live”person is sent to an auxiliary communication service, such as forexample, a voice messaging system, whether a voice messaging systemprovided outside of the call control system (e.g., called party voicemail system) or a voice messaging system provided in association withthe call control system (e.g., the message delivery system show anddescribed in the above referenced application entitled “System andMethod for Called Party Controlled Message Delivery”. In such asituation, since the parameters for determining “willingness” and/orpropensity to pay for such an auxiliary service may be different fromthe willingness and/or propensity to pay for a live call, a newcalculation is made according to embodiments to determine whether thecall should proceed with an auxiliary communication service and if sowhat the billing and/or collection parameters will be. This newcalculation is preferably made using the procedures outlined abovehowever, one more of the criteria parameters used to determinewillingness to pay may be changed.

In the prior art systems, the calls that required messaging services,were blocked because there was no assurance that the calling (or in somecases the called) party would be willing and/or able to pay for suchservices. However, in the described embodiment of the present invention,iROM 101 may preferably determine that it is indeed feasible to provideone or more services desired by the calling and/or called user, perhapsby changing the method of payment and/or the collection mechanism. ICBS10 preferably communicates the called (or in some cases, the calling)numbers of calls requiring auxiliary services to iROM 101 for rating (orrerating) the related customer scores. An opportunity risk matrix (ORM)is established by the service provider identifying various service orbilling plans aimed at optimizing profit opportunities for some of theblocked calls. The different risk levels found within the ORM may belower than the threshold risk level associated with the real-time callauthorization procedure. However, the varying levels are selected tocorrespond to the various customer scores (e.g., a higher risk customerscore may be paired with a low-risk billing and collection method, whilea low risk customer score may be associated with a higher risk billingand collection plan). As iROM 101 processes the customer score incomparison to the ORM levels through a software or hardware product orapplication comparator, a subset of possible revenue opportunityapplications is identified as potentially available to the customersaccording to their respective customer scores. These possible callcompletion opportunities may either be presented to the customer forselection, or may be selected and implemented by the service providerdirectly.

In making this determination of possible revenue opportunityapplications and products, parameters such as customer score or riskmetric, the general length of the inmate's incarceration (which maypreferably be obtained through deduction based on the prison unit fromwhich the call originates, which, itself, may be deduced from the areacode and prefix of the calling number, typically obtained from theautomatic number identification (ANI) service), the potential profitmargin available for the type of calls predicted (e.g., long distancevs. local or comparing average call costs vs. recovery margins fordifferent geographic regions or comparing the available billable rates),the payment history of a particular customer or owner of the destinationnumber, contractual obligations, commission agreements, governmentalregulations, the type of transaction requested, costs for externalvalidation, billing and collection (B&C) costs, rate revenue per call,the cost of the different billing products versus their economicbenefits, and the like are considered. By weighing those and otherparameters in the iT brain or system processor, iROM 101 preferablyselects a variety of different payment products, which may includeproducts such as standard post-paid products or prepaid products. Theymay also preferably determine a billing cycle, such as every 30 days,every two weeks, or even every few days depending on the customer score.They may also preferably determine the appropriate payment cycle, suchas 30 days, two weeks, or a couple of days from receiving the bill. IROM101 also preferably determines whether a direct billing product isnecessary and/or desirable, or whether LEC billing product isacceptable. For LEC unbillable calls 106, a direct billing system wouldbe desirable as the prison telecommunication service provider is notcapable of billing that particular LEC without a billing arrangement.

As part of the general management functions performed by the inventivesystem, the transaction authorizations may take the form of acredit-type authorization, in which the customer would be limited to acertain monetary value of credit, or an entitlement-type authorization,in which the customer would be limited to a numerical, per-useentitlement. In administering either type of usage authorization system,the present invention intelligently sets the usage limit based onindividual customer segmentation using the customer score and theadditional information considered by iCBS 10 to manage the risk of thetransaction.

Turning now to FIG. 2, there is shown a high-level block diagramdepicting a more detailed view of some of the elements of iCBS 10, asshown in FIG. 1. In an example operation of the described embodiment ofthe present invention as applied to a prison telecommunicationsprovider, the elements of FIG. 2 illustrate the system configured toimplement and execute the described embodiment. In operation, an inmateenters phone number/transaction request 20 into a prison phone, whichrequests the transaction of a collect call. Phone number/transactionrequest 20 is received by iCSS 100 and processed at intelligenttargeting (iT) brain 200 to preferably determine a predictive risk levelassociated with phone number/transaction request 20.

Assuming, for purposes of this example, that phone number/transactionrequest 20 is the first transaction request for this particular callednumber, iT brain 200 preferably makes a real-time determination toauthorize or block the requested call. To make the real-timeauthorization, iT brain 200 preferably accesses internal database 201 tofind generic demographic information related to phone number/transactionrequest 20. By using generic and widely available demographicinformation, as correlated to phone number/transaction request 20, iTbrain 200 preferably calculates the initial customer score for purposesof authorizing or blocking the initial collect call request. Inadditional embodiments, iT brain 200 may also initially access the localinformation which may provide accurate BNA information, the generallength of the inmate's incarceration, the potential profit marginavailable for the type of calls requested, the payment history of aparticular customer or owner of the destination number, contractualobligations, commission agreements, governmental regulations, the typeof transaction requested, costs for external validation, B&C costs, raterevenue per call, rate of consumption, and the like. IT brain 200 maypreferably cross-reference census data that has been associated witharea codes and telephone number prefixes, by using theBellcore/Telecordia area code system, the NPA/Nxx numbering system. Therelated census data may preferably be stored locally and used by iTbrain 200 to find generalized income levels of persons residing in thatgeographic area, average home values of persons residing in that area,and, therefore, facilitate calculating an intelligent real-time customerscore based solely on the use of the NPA/Nxx data.

After making its real-time determination based on the informationgathered from internal database 201, iT brain 200 preferably assignscustomer score 202 to phone number/transaction request 20. Customerscore 202 will typically reside within preset risk range 204. Dependingon the system used by prison telecommunication provider, a high scoremay correlate to a low risk, high profitability transaction request,whereas a low score would represent a high risk, low profitabilitytransaction request. It should be noted that other scoring systems withdifferent representations of risk levels may also be used in preset riskrange 204. Customer score 202 is then compared by iT brain 200 with riskthreshold 203. Risk threshold 203 may also preferably be pre-selected bythe prison telecommunication service provider on a sliding scalerepresented by threshold range 205. If the risk level associated withcustomer score 202 represents a better risk than risk threshold 203,iCSS 100 allows phone number/transaction requests 20 to be completed.However, if customer score 202 represents a higher risk value than riskthreshold 203, phone number/transaction request 20 is denied or blocked.

After iT brain 200 makes the determination of whether to block orconnect phone number/transaction request 20, it begins to refinecustomer score 202 by accessing external databases 21-1 through 21-N.The process of accessing external databases 21-1 through 21-N issometimes referred to as data mining. IT brain 200 mines for dataassociated with phone number/transaction request 20 that would indicatea tendency for a low or high customer score. Such information mayinclude payment histories for certain on-line vendors, in-service datesfor the destination phone number, the type of dwelling that is servicedby the destination telephone number (i.e., whether the dwelling is ahome or an apartment), accurate BNA information, and the like. IT brain200 will preferably mine data in external databases 21-1 through 21-Nand possibly find correlation elements 22 to correlate the data minedwith the destination of phone number preferably within a period of timeafter the initial collect call being made.

After completion of the data mining process and evaluating all ofcorrelation elements 22, iT brain 200 preferably recalculates apredictive risk management value and refines customer score 202 to phonenumber/transaction request 20. As opposed to the real-time determinationrepresented by initial customer score 202, refined customer score 202preferably represents a more accurate investigation and prediction intothe customer score or predictive risk of the called party at phonenumber/transaction request 20. The eventual level of customer score 202may preferably indicate to iCSS 100 that future calls should either beblocked or be turned over to iROM 101 for determination of a revenueopportunity product to be offered to the called party

When a revenue opportunity product may be desirable, iCSS 100 preferablycommunicates customer score 202 to iROM 101 for determining appropriaterevenue or profit opportunity products or applications to offer orselect for the called party. IROM 101 examines customer score 202 andcompares it to the ORM to select various payment and billing productsaccording to cycle list 207 and product list 208. The service providerwould either present the list of possible products to the customer forselection, or select the most desirable product automatically. Forexample, if phone number/transaction request 20 is serviced by a LECwhich does not have a billing arrangement with the prisontelecommunication service provider, yet its customer score 202represents an extremely low risk and high profitability margin, iROM 101may select to offer standard payment products, which include post-paidproducts billed directly by the service provider on a monthly paymentcycle. These high-valued customers may also preferably warrantadditional grace periods in which to make payments after the 30-daycycle. In contrast, if customer score 202 represents a higher risk valuethan risk threshold 203, but still offers a reasonable predictive riskof recovering revenue, iROM 101 may select to offer different prepaidcalling packages to the called party at phone number/transaction request20, including various denominations and accounts to pay for future orpending collect calls. Additional, if customer score 202 represents ahigh predictive risk, but still an acceptable level, instead of aprepaid product, a standard post-paid bill product may be offered.However, instead of providing for a 30 day billing cycle as with thelower risk customers, iROM 101 may select more frequent billing cycles,such as billing every three days, with a payment return time of threedays. In this manner, the higher risk individuals will be billed morequickly and, if their payments are not received in the time allotted,their accounts may be blocked before further costs are expendedcompleting calls that may not be paid for.

In conjunction with the revenue opportunity products offered by iROM101, iDBS 102 adds direct billing methods to supplement the revenueopportunity products. For example, if phone number/transaction request20 has a very low risk level in customer score 202, but, the destinationnumber is served by a LEC which does not have a billing agreement withthe prison telecommunication provider, iCBS, as depicted in FIG. 1,would still operate to optimize profits from such potential callers byimplementing a direct billing scheme from iDBS 102, which sends billsdirectly to the called party to pay for collect calls made from theprison. Thus, while the prior art methods would simply block all suchcalls, the method described in this embodiment of the present invention,operate to optimize profits that would otherwise go unrealized. Itshould be noted that additional necessity for direct billing maygenerally arise when iROM 101 designates or selects billing and/orpayment cycles of less than the standard 30 day periods. Because typicalLECs do not bill in cycles less than 30 days, it would be required thatthe prison telecommunications provider bill those clients directly forthe shortened billing and/or payment cycle. Alternatively, for low risk,high profit margin customers, standard billing through LEC billing 23could be continued. The ultimate choice of billing products preferablyresults from a comparison of the cost and economic benefits for thedifferent available products.

Additional embodiments of the present invention may also include iHVC103 to provide customer services. Even though the specifically describedexample addresses issues involved in serving prisons, a considerableamount of revenue is still available in providing such telecommunicationservices to the prison and the prisoners' family communities. Thus, asin any other service oriented business, customer service and customersatisfaction is important in maintaining revenue and also increasing therecovery of revenue and ultimate firm profitability. With these goals inmind, iCBS 10, as depicted in FIG. 1, provides a system for offeringvariable levels of service to customers depending on the value ofcustomer score 202. For example, average customers who pay a smallamount on low margin accounts may be placed into a queue for aninteractive voice response (IVR) system in order to access helpapplications or caller customer services. In contrast, highly valuedcustomers with customer score 202 that represent very low predictiverisk and very high profit margin, may be treated differently in theservice center interactions. These higher valued customers may, forinstance, be placed at the beginning of the queue to the IVR system.Alternatively, the higher valued customers may have a separate customerservice access number to call that offers fewer and shorter waitingperiods and possibly even more customer service opportunities. Evenfurther, the highest valued customers may be directly connected to liveoperators in order to access the customer service system. In creatingthe different service levels in service level list 206, iCBS 10 (FIG. 1)operates to preserve and extend the possible revenue recovery from thehighest valued customers, while at the same time providing incentive forthe lower valued (i.e., higher predictive risk and lower profit margin)customers to increase their customer or profitability score to obtainhigher levels of service.

FIG. 3 is a flow chart that illustrates the steps implemented incarrying out the function of the iCSS of the revenue optimizing systemof the described embodiment of the present invention shown in FIGS. 1and 2. In step 300, the iCSS receives a phone number and transactionrequest. The transaction request and/or related phone number may be aninitial transaction request or may be a repeat transaction request. Instep 301, the system checks the local database for validation(validation may comprise the verification that a billing mechanism is inplace to bill the requested transaction). If the phone number cannot bevalidated, the information is forwarded to the iROM in step 302. In step303, the local database is again checked for the telephone number. Ifthe record of the phone number is not found in the local database, thesystem preferably checks for an initial customer score related to thetelephone number in step 304. In step 305, the profitability of thetransaction is determined. In step 306, using both the profitabilityinformation and the initial customer score, the system determineswhether the requested transaction is expected to be profitable. If so,the transaction is authorized in step 309. If not, the transaction isdenied in step 307 and then transferred to the iROM in step 308.

While the initial customer score is a value calculated in real-time tomake a real-time determination to authorize or deny a requestedtransaction, the refined customer score is a more detailed prediction ofrisk or dependability level as performed over a longer amount of timeand is also a more detailed review of information associated with thephone number. When an initial transaction request has been made, as theiCSS makes its real-time customer assessment, it also begins the processof predicting and determining the refined customer score for subsequenttransaction requests. If the phone number is found in the local databasein step 303, the database is checked for the existing refined customerscore in step 310. The profitability of the transaction is determined instep 305, whereafter a determination is made in step 306 whether therequested transaction is expected to be profitable, based at least inpart on the profitability information and the refined customer score. Ifit is expected to be profitable, the transaction is authorized in step309. If not, the transaction is denied in step 307 and the informationis transferred to the iROM in step 308.

If an initial customer score was calculated as a result of step 304, thesystem preferably accesses external databases in step 313, checks anycustomer payment experience in step 314, and gathers additionalcustomer-specific information in step 312, after interacting with thecustomer in step 311. For example, during any outbound calls placed bythe system's IVR units to the called party the IVR applications promptthe called party for additional, useful identification and validationinformation. Alternatively, the information may be retrieved when thecalled party calls the service provide either with live, voice-to-voiceor chat capabilities. Using this additional information, the initialcustomer score is preferably refined into the refined customer score instep 315. Refinement is a continuous process as new information isobtained. Thereafter, the refined customer score is stored in the localdatabase for future use in step 316. As shown in FIG. 3, the iT brainessentially performs the functions described in steps 304-306, and 310.

FIG. 4 is a flow chart that represents the steps of functionalinteraction between the iROM and the iDBS, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.The iROM is preferably accessed in response to the delivery of aparticular customer score corresponding to a called telephone number orone or more different blocked calls in order to determine whether arevenue opportunity exists in providing one or more of the revenueopportunity products. In step 400, the iROM receives a blocked or unpaidaccount along with the telephone number associated with that account.Upon receipt of that blocked account, the iROM retrieves the customerscore (either initial or refined) associated with that account in step401. The iROM is generally implemented when blocked accounts arereceived; whether those blocked accounts are due to a bad debt or due tothe destination numbers being serviced by a LEC without a billingarrangement with the prison communication provider. In step 402, theiROM preferably compares the customer number and the transactionprofitability with the ORM to identify possible applicable revenue orprofit generation applications and billing and payment products.

The IROM determines whether a direct billing product would be availableor beneficial to the customer in step 403 based on its cost and economicbenefits. If no direct billing product is suggested, then, in step 404,the iROM will pass the billing structure over to a standardthird-party-billing-authority option, such as the LEC billing in theprison service provider example. If, on the other hand, it is determinedthat an appropriate direct billing product may be available from theiDBS, the iROM will identify and/or select a particular product or a setof possible products for a customer in step 405. In step 406, adetermination is made whether the selected product or products arepre-paid products or post-paid products. If one or more of the selectedproducts is a pre-paid product, the product is grouped for presentationto the customer in steps 407 and 408. If however, the selected productincludes a post-paid product, the iDBS, responsive to the customer scorecomparison, will select the appropriate variable billing cycle and/orvariable payment cycle for the customer in step 408. The identifiedpost-paid products may also be assembled with any of the identifiedprepaid products for presentation to the customer in steps 407 and 408.However, the in the described embodiment, the system will preferablyautomatically select the specific direct billing product that is mostbeneficial for profit optimization. In step 407, the system places anoutbound call to the customer at the telephone number. During the call,the different identified prepaid and/or post-paid products are presentedto the customer to select for facilitating future transactions in step409. Additionally, in step 410, the system retrieves additionalvalidation and/or identification data from the customer to supplementthe information contained in the internal/local database. Upon receivingthe product selection from the customer, the system will implement theselected product in step 411.

If a post-paid product is selected, the system sends the bill directlyto the customer in step 412. Once the bill has been sent to thecustomer, the system preferably begins to monitor the bill status of theoutstanding pending bill in step 413. As a part of the monitoringprocess, in step 414, the system determines whether the customer hasfully paid the bill within the time allotted. If the customer has notfully paid the bill within the allotted time, the system preferablyblocks or denies any future or pending requests of the customer in step415. The iDBS preferably sends the customer a past due or delinquentnotice in step 416. Depending on the number of past due or delinquentnotices, as determined by step 417, the customer's account may either besubmitted to a bill collection service in step 418, or passed back tothe decision block of step 414 to determine whether the customer haspaid the bill. As soon as the customer is detected to have paid thebill, the status on the customer's account is preferably changed to a“paid” status in step 419.

To maintain an accurate predictive risk management level or customerscore, the iT brain may dynamically adjust the profitability or customerscore associated with the customer. In step 420, in addition togathering the additional information from both the internal and externaldatabases, it is determined whether the specific payment history of thecustomer merits any change in the customer's related customer score. Ifno change is indicated, no action is taken in step 421. However, if anadjustment is merited according to the payment history, the systempreferably recalculates or adjusts (i.e., refines) the customer scoreaccording to the customer's specific payment history in step 422. Forexample, if the customer has numerous delinquent notices, and/ornumerous late payment notices, the system may preferably adjust thecustomer score to reflect a higher predictive risk associated with thatcustomer. Conversely, if the customer has exhibited a good bill paymenthistory over a period of time, the system may preferably adjust thecustomer score to reflect a lower predictive risk value for thatcustomer. Thus, as the iT brain learns more about the paymentcharacteristics of the customer, the customer's customer score orprofitability level will preferably be adjusted accordingly toaccurately reflect the level of profitability or predictive risk for thecustomer.

FIG. 5 is a flow chart that represents steps that may be implementedwhen executing the functions of the iHVC of the described embodiment ofthe present invention shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. In step 500, the iHVC willreceive a call for assistance from a customer. The call may be placed toa customer call center, or some other IVR system that implements acustomer service call center. Once the call has been received, the iHVCretrieves the customer score associated with the particular customer instep 501. In step 502, the customer score will be compared against thematrix of preset service levels. The iHVC will then select a particularlevel of service for the customer responsive to the compared customerscore, in step 503. The resulting service provided to a customer will,therefore, vary according the customer's customer score.

It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to thedescribed embodiment tailored for prison telecommunication serviceproviders. Alternative embodiments of the present invention may beapplied to other businesses as well. For example, remaining in thetelecommunications industry, the collect call (i.e., 0+, 1-800-COLLECT,1-800-CALL-ATT, etc.), 10-10-XXX long distance services, and the likemay also implement the present invention to improve its capability foroptimizing profitability. Outside of the telecommunication industry,credit and billing systems may be based on the present invention keyingcredit authorization and risk-dependent transactions on telephonenumbers with variable billing and service procedures selectivelytailored for the individual customer segment. Any system in which atelephone number may be used to designate the ultimately responsibleparty may implement various embodiments of the present invention.

Additionally, outside of the credit authorization sectors, call centersmay be able to implement various embodiments of the present inventionfor selectively offering customer service to various callers based onthe customer score for potential profitability. For instance, if acaller calls into a business call center, the customer score analysismay be performed to determine that the caller is likely a profitablepotential customer. As a result of this customer score, the call centermay direct the caller to a more personal calling experience to enhancethe callers interaction with the call center.

When implemented in software, the elements of the present invention areessentially the code segments to perform the necessary tasks. Theprogram or code segments can be stored in a processor readable medium ortransmitted by a computer data signal embodied in a carrier wave, or asignal modulated by a carrier, over a transmission medium. The“processor readable medium” may include any medium that can store ortransfer information. Examples of the processor readable medium includean electronic circuit, a semiconductor memory device, a ROM, a flashmemory, an erasable ROM (EROM), a floppy diskette, a compact diskCD-ROM, an optical disk, a hard disk, a fiber optic medium, a radiofrequency (RF) link, etc. The computer data signal may include anysignal that can propagate over a transmission medium such as electronicnetwork channels, optical fibers, air, electromagnetic, RF links, etc.The code segments may be downloaded via computer networks such as theInternet, Intranet, etc.

FIGS. 6 though 10 are embodiments of flow charts used to implement someof the features of the present inventive concepts. FIG. 6 illustratesthe situation that occurs when a non-incarcerated customer places a callfor the purpose of leaving a message for an incarcerated personaccording to an embodiment of the invention. In this example, as shownin flow chart 600, the caller calls (process 601) a platform expresslyfor the purpose of leaving a message.

When the system detects a call incoming from a party, process 602 of theillustrated embodiment prompts for a billing telephone number (BTN),although embodiments may determine BTN or other information throughother means (e.g., automatic number identification (ANTI)). Process 603determines if the detected BTN has already established a voice mailaccount. If it has not, then process 604 determines if the BTN is aprepaid collect account.

If it is a prepaid collect account, then process 618 determines if theprepaid account has sufficient funds. If so, process 623 records amessage for the called party, which is in this case a detainee. If thereare not sufficient funds in the account then process 619 prompts foreither collecting more funds or terminating the session via process 620.

Returning now to process 603, if the billing telephone number has avoicemail account then process 611 determines if there is a voicemailmailbox identification associated therewith. If not, then process 617determines if this party is a prepaid call account user. If it is,process 618 is involved according to the illustrated embodiment withrespect to the call. If process 611 determines that there is a mailboxassociated with the user (e.g., by referencing the BTN, account number,mailbox ID, user input, etc.), then process 612 determines what thatmailbox ID is, process 613 validates the mailbox ID and process 616determines if the BTN aid mailbox combination are valid. If not, thenprocess 614 of the illustrated embodiment prompts for the caller toreenter the information. If the ID continues to be invalid for a numberof times, for example twice, then process 615 terminates the session.However, if the user information and mailbox combination are valid thenprocess 617 determines if the calling party is a prepaid collect accountand if it is then process 618, as discussed above, determines if thereare enough funds in the account to allow a message to be recorded. Onthe other hand, if process 617 determines that it is not a prepaidaccount then process 621, as discussed above, determines the likelihoodof payment and the payment method.

Process 622 of the illustrated embodiment determines if this is going tobe an LEC/direct billed decile proved voicemail and if so, then process605, working in conjunction with process 621 if necessary, determinesthe decile. Process 606 then determines if this BTN is eligible for apayment and collection plan using the foregoing decile and, if not, theuser is sent to an announcement via processes 607 and 608 to setupprepaid collect accounts. If the BTN is eligible for a plan then process609 is called upon to determine whether the caller wants to insureprivacy for the called party or whether anybody can listen to themessage. If privacy is required, process 610 sets up a mailbox withprivacy features. If not, then process 623 records the message, asdiscussed above, for general delivery (e.g., anyone using a particularphone or other user terminal may be able to retrieve the message such asby the user dialing the BTN associated with the message).

FIG. 7 illustrates one embodiment of flow chart 700 of a method when adetainee retrieves a message in which the called party pays for themessage delivery service. This would occur, for example, when a detaineeis attempting to receive a message left by his or her mom. In such asituation, in process 701 the detainee dials the billed telephone number(BTN) and process 702 determines if there is a voicemail associated withthe BTN that needs to be reviewed. If not, then optionally the detaineevia process 703 can attempt to contact the BTN and process 704determines when the BTN, for example, the detainee's mom answers thecall. If the call is answered, then process 704 connects the parties andprocess 706 supervises termination of the call at the appropriate time.Of course, if the called telephone number does not answer, process 704operating in conjunction with process 707 supervises the no answercondition and optionally connects the detainee to the system for leavingmessages as will be discussed with respect to FIG. 8.

Returning now to process 702, if there is a voicemail associated with aBTN then process 710 sends an announcement that there is a message andprocess 711 of the illustrated embodiment determines if the detaineewants to retrieve the message. If the detainee desires to retrieve themessage, process 712 determines if there is a mailbox ID associated withthe message. If there is, then process 713 of the illustrated embodimentobtains the mailbox ID from the detainee and process 704 determines ifit is valid. Alternative embodiments may make a mailbox determinationthrough different means, such as by referencing calling and/or calledparty information (e.g., inmate personal identification information(PIN)). Process 715 prompts to reenter invalid numbers, such as one ortwo or three times, and terminates the call if in fact there is noproper match. If there is a proper match, then process 715 determines ifthis is a prepaid collect account. If it is, then process 716 determinesif there are sufficient funds in the account. It should be appreciatedthat although the embodiment of flow chart 600 in FIG. 6 verifies thatsufficient funds are in an account prior to accepting the message fordelivery, embodiments of the invention do not actually debit such fundsuntil the message or other auxiliary service is performed. Accordingly,flow chart 700 of FIG. 7 again verifies the funds in the account toprotect against a situation where the funds have been depleted afteracceptance of the message but before delivery of the message.Alternative embodiments of the invention may debit the account (or debitthe account for some portion of the auxiliary service fee) when themessage is accepted.

If there are insufficient funds, in the account, process 723 announcesto the detainee that there needs to be more funds available and the callis terminated or the detainee is presented with an opportunity to payfor the message through other means (e.g. the detainees prepaid account,such as a commissary account). However, if process 716 determines thatthere are sufficient funds, then process 717 debits the prepaid accountand the detainee retrieves the message via process 718. If the detaineedoes not want to retrieve the message, then process 719 terminates thecall or presents the detainee with other options. If the detainee wantsto leave another message (e.g., a reply or return message), process 720supervises such a situation. If the detainee is not authorized to leavea message, process 733 provides such an announcement. If the detainee isauthorized to leave a message, process 721 records the message andprocess 722 optionally notifies an external party of the message. Itshould be appreciated that processes similar to these described abovewith respect to flow diagram 600 of FIG. 6 may be implemented withrespect to the detainee leaving a message. For example, the abovedescribed processes for determining if an account has sufficient fundsand/or if other payment methods are available may be implemented withrespect to the detainee's message. Such funding options may be made withrespect to the original caller (e.g., BTN) and/or the detainee (e.g.,the detainee is to pay for the return message).

Returning now to process 715, if the BTN is not a prepaid collect amountthen process 730, in the manner discussed above, checks for thelikelihood of payment and the method of payment. Process 731 thencontrols the leaving or not leaving of a message in conjunction withprocess 732.

FIG. 8 shows an example flow chart 800 of the situation where a detaineeleaves a message where a called party pays. This situation would occur,for example, when the detainee calls home and there is a busy (or noanswer) situation and the detainee desires to leave a message. In thissituation, the detainee via process 801 dials or otherwise calls theBTN. Process 802 supervises the connection to the BTN and process 803determines if the BTN answers. If the BTN does answer, process 804connects the parties in the well known manner. If there is no answer,process 806, in conjunction with process 807, determines if the calledBTN has a voicemail account. If not, the call is terminated oroptionally, if desired, an account can be setup for the detainee.

If there is an account, then a determination is made as to whether theBTN desires to receive messages from this detainee. If yes, then process810 determines if this is a direct billed account. If it is, then thedetainee leaves a message via process 819 and notification is sent tothe BTN via process 818. However, if this is not a direct billedsituation, then process 811 prepares to deal with the prepaid collectaccount. Process 813 determines if the detainee is authorized to sendthe message and if so, process 814 determines if the account hassufficient funds. If not, process 815 supervises the announcement ofinsufficient funds and either terminates the call or in some casesarranges with the user to provide more funds into the system. Process816 allows the detainee to leave a message with process 817 deductingthe proper amount from the BTN account. Process 818, as discussed, sendsnotification to the BTN that a message is available.

FIG. 9 shows one embodiment of flow chart 900 in which the calling partyretrieves the message where the calling party pays. In such a situationprocess 901 notifies the BTN of an incoming message from a detainee,such as through outbound calling, dial tone signaling, etc. This can befor a period of time, such as three days or three message or any otherdesired timing depending upon, for example, the amount of money beingcharged to the BTN on an account by account basis. Process 902 allows,if desired, the BTN to listen to five random seconds of the message andprocess 903 determines if the BTN wants to then pay for and listen tothe full message. If the BTN desires to listen to the message process901 then determines the kind of account being used. If this is a prepaidaccount, then the prepaid processes are put in place, as discussedabove. If it is not a prepaid account, then process 910 determines if itis a direct billed account. Process 911 quickly determines, based uponthe eligibility factors and other decile factors as discussed above andprocesses 912, 913, 914 and 915 determine what type of process forbilling will occur. In situations where it is decided that the user hasa low likelihood of paying, then process 921 of the illustratedembodiment provides announcements to that affect and decides withprocess 922 if an account is to be opened. If an account is to beopened, then processes 923, 924 and 925 work with a customer carerepresentative, an IVR platform, etc. to establish an account for thepurposes of playing messages via process 934 and subsequently deletingmessages via process 935 after the messages are played.

Returning to process 920, if the decile analysis is determined to beacceptable then processes 926, 927, 928, 929, 930, 931, 932 and 933control the establishment of accounts for the retrieving of the messageand eventually play the message via process 934.

FIG. 10 shows one embodiment of flow chart 1000 in which inboundmessages are recorded by calling parties who pay for those messages.Accordingly, process 1001 establishes a calling party voicemail accountvia a customer care representative, an IVR platform, etc. Process 1002controls the inbound calling from a calling party to a voicemailplatform. Process 1003 in conjunction with process 1004 determines ifthe mailbox is valid. If it is not, process 1005 allows the caller toreenter mailbox numbers, such as for one or two or three times, prior toterminating the call. If the mailbox number and the user information(e.g., (BTN)) are valid, then process 1006 determines if there is aprepaid account. If not, then process 1010 determines the decile level,as discussed above, for this caller at this time. Process 1001, inconjunction with processes 1013, 1014 and 1015 determine whether theuser is able to leave a message. Processes 1019 and 1012 control therecording of the message for the detainee. If however, process 1007determines that the prepaid account has insufficient funds then anannouncement of insufficient funds is made via process 1008 and the callis terminated. In some situations the calling party, via process 1015,is determined not to have sufficient credit and therefore needs toconvert to a prepaid account which is controlled by processes 1016, 1017and 1018.

Note that in all cases where the detainee or the non-custodial personleaves a message the message could be any other service such as, forexample, an email or direction to print a document, etc., all of whichwould have different charges associated therewith and thereforedifferent algorithms determining their respective payment, if desired.

FIG. 11 illustrates computer system 1100 adapted to use the presentinvention. Central processing unit (CPU) 1101 is coupled to system bus1102. The CPU 1101 may be any general purpose CPU. However, the presentinvention is not restricted by the architecture of CPU 1101 as long asCPU 1101 supports the inventive operations as described herein. Bus 1102is coupled to random access memory (RAM) 1103, which may be SRAM, DRAM,or SDRAM. ROM 1104 is also coupled to bus 1102, which may be PROM,EPROM, or EEPROM. RAM 1103 and ROM 1104 hold user and system data andprograms as is well known in the art.

Bus 1102 is also coupled to input/output (I/O) controller card 1105,communications adapter card 1111, user interface card 1108, and displaycard 1109. The I/O adapter card 1105 connects to storage devices 1106,such as one or more of a hard drive, a CD drive, a floppy disk drive, atape drive, to the computer system. The I/O adapter 1105 is alsoconnected to printer 1111, which would allow the system to print papercopies of information such as document, photographs, articles, etc. Notethat the printer may a printer (e.g. dot matrix, laser, etc.), a faxmachine, or a copier machine. Communications card 1111 is adapted tocouple the computer system 1100 to a network 1112, which may be one ormore of a telephone network, a local (LAN) and/or a wide-area (WAN)network, an Ethernet network, and/or the Internet network. Userinterface card 1108 couples user input devices, such as keyboard 1113,pointing device 1107, and microphone 1116, to the computer system 1100.User interface card 1108 also provides sound output to a user viaspeaker(s) 1115. The display card 1109 is driven by CPU 1101 to controlthe display on display device 1110.

When operating any one or number of embodiments of the present inventionas shown in FIGS. 1 & 2, and, in particular, the prisontelecommunication service provider embodiment described herein, computersystem 1100 preferably connects via network 1112 to phone system 1117,which is connected at some interface point to public switched telephonenetwork (PSTN) 1118. Computer system 1100 preferably includes softwareapplications, private branch exchange (PBX) 1121 and prison phone systemapplication 1122, run from CPU 1101 to control all aspects of thepresent invention. As inmates attempt to call from phone 1119 todestination number/phone 1120, the embodiment of the present inventionrunning on computer system 1100 facilitates the connection and theprobabilities that the service provider will recover the cost andrevenue related to that call.

Although the present invention and its advantages have been described indetail, it should be understood that various changes, substitutions andalterations can be made herein without departing from the spirit andscope of the invention as defined by the appended claims. Moreover, thescope of the present application is not intended to be limited to theparticular embodiments of the process, machine, manufacture compositionof matter, means, methods and steps described in the specification. Asone of ordinary skill in the art will readily appreciate from thedisclosure of the present invention, processes, machines, manufacture,compositions of matter, means, methods, or steps, presently existing orlater to be developed that perform substantially the same function orachieve substantially the same result as the corresponding embodimentsdescribed herein may be utilized according to the present invention.Accordingly, the appended claims are intended to include within theirscope such processes, machines, manufacture, compositions of matter,means, methods, or steps.

1. A method for determining eligibility for a message service, saidmethod comprising: detecting when a particular user has placed a callingconnection that results in an opportunity to use a message service;determining, at the time of said detection, eligibility options of saidparticular user to use one or more message options; and communicating tosaid particular user said determined ones of said eligibility options.2. The method of claim 1 wherein at least some of said eligibilityoptions are dependent upon credit factors of said particular user. 3.The method of claim 2 wherein said credit factors are selected from alist of: a credit risk associated with said user; a metric indicatingsaid user's propensity to pay; and said user's credit history.
 4. Themethod of claim 1 wherein at least some of said eligibility options aredependent upon a length of stay by said user at a facility served withsaid message service.
 5. The method of claim 1 wherein at least some ofsaid eligibility options are dependent upon a potential profit marginavailable for the type of said calling connection.
 6. The method ofclaim 2 wherein said credit factors are contemporaneous decile factorsof said particular user.
 7. The method of claim 1 wherein said messageservice is selected from the list of: leaving a voicemail message;retrieving a voicemail message; leaving a reply voicemail message inresponse to a retrieved voicemail message.
 8. The method of claim 1wherein said particular user is either a person calling an incarceratedperson or an incarcerated person.
 9. The method of claim 1 wherein atleast one of said eligibility options is selected from the list of: theidentity of a user eligible for leaving a message; the identity of auser to whom a message is being directed; credit availability of a user,quick check of eligibility, establishment of a new account by a user.10. A transaction authorization system for optimizing transactionprofitability, said transaction authorization system comprising: anauthorization interface for receiving one or more transaction requestsfrom a user, said requests pertaining to a BTN; a scoring module forassessing a profitability score associated with at least one of: saidBTN and said one or more transaction requests; and a transactionservices system available for use by a user based upon a certainassessed profitability score associated with a transaction request. 11.The system of claim 10 further comprising: a profit opportunity modulefor selecting ones of a plurality of profit generation applicationsbased at least in part on said profitability score.
 12. The system ofclaim 10 wherein said transaction services are selected from the listof: leaving a voice mail message, leaving an e-mail message, creatingmessage copies hand delivery of a message, private messages, retrievinga voicemail message; leaving a reply voicemail message in response to aretrieved voicemail message, retrieving an e-mail message.
 13. A methodfor use in controlling communications with respect to an incarcerationfacility; said method comprising: accepting calling connections directedto incarcerated users, processing an accepted calling connection whensaid calling connection is directed to a user who is unavailable toaccept said calling connection in real time; said processing comprising:determining at least one auxiliary service desired by said callingconnection; and determining a credit eligibility of said callingconnection based upon said determined desired calling connection. 14.The method of claim 13 further comprising: completing said callingconnection to said auxiliary service upon a positive determination ofsaid credit eligibility.
 15. The method of claim 14 wherein saidauxiliary services are selected from the list of: leaving a voice mailmessage, leaving an e-mail message, creating message copies, handdelivery of a message, private messages, retrieving a voicemail message;leaving a reply voicemail message in response to a retrieved voicemailmessage, retrieving an e-mail message.
 16. The method of claim 14further comprising: accepting calling connections from an incarcerateduser, said calling connection directed to receipt of a desired one ofsaid auxiliary services; and determining an eligibility of saidincarcerated user to receive said desired service.
 17. The method ofclaim 16 wherein said last-mentioned determining comprises: acceptingfrom said incarcerated user an ID pertaining to said desired auxiliaryservice.
 18. The method of claim 16 wherein said last-mentioneddetermining comprises: determining whether credit available to saidincarcerated user is sufficient for said desired auxiliary service. 19.The method of claim 16 further comprising: accepting calling connectionsfrom an incarcerated users said calling connection directed to anon-incarcerated user; determining at least one auxiliary serviceavailable to said incarcerated user when said called user isunavailable; and determining an eligibility of said incarcerated user toaccess determined available ones of said auxiliary services.
 20. Themethod of claim 19 wherein said last-mentioned determining comprises:accepting from said incarcerated user an ID pertaining to a desired oneof said auxiliary services.
 21. The method of claim 19 wherein saidlast-mentioned determining comprises: determining whether creditavailable to said incarcerated user is sufficient for a desired one ofsaid auxiliary services.
 22. The method of claim 19 wherein saidauxiliary services are selected from the list of: leaving a voice mailmessage, leaving an e-mail message, creating message copies, handdelivery of a message, private messages, retrieving a voicemail message;leaving a reply voicemail message in response to a retrieved voicemailmessage, retrieving an e-mail message.